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Spicy Honey Vegetable Stir Fry

Yeah, I know what you may be thinking — “Wow, she eats a lot of vegetables and rice.” Well, yeah, I do. But, each dish is made differently, and has a unique flavor. The water chestnuts in this one add a unique crunchiness and taste to the dish, while the honey gives it just a bit of sweetness.

I had bought too many vegetables for a different dish the other day and didn’t want them to go bad. I also wanted to try cooking with the grape seed oil I purchased a few months ago. And, well to be honest, I wanted to make something I could have for dinner, as well as take with me for lunch the next few days.

This is gluten-free and vegetarian. Some vegans don’t eat honey, so if you are having vegan guests, I’d check with them first, or just use a vegan-approved substitute. If you’re not worried about the gluten-free part, adding a little bit of soy sauce to the veggies while cooking gives this a whole lot of depth, too — but that’s optional.

Cook the rice according to the package. Cut all the vegetables, except for the water chestnuts, into thin slices.

Coat the bottom of a pan with grape seed oil, and heat. (You can sub olive oil, but I like the taste that the grape seed oil leaves. It much cleaner and transparent. This oil also takes high temperatures really well, so it doesn’t burn your veggies)

Add the garlic, onions and season with garlic salt and pepper. Cook for a minute and add the zucchini, peppers and water chestnuts. Stir in the crushed ground red pepper, and cook for about a minute. Drizzle honey over the veggies, mix and cook until desired tenderness.

I wanted the veggies a bit crunchy, so I didn’t let it go for all that long.